


Coffee or Tea?

by No_Day_But_Today



Series: Falling for You... Literally [2]
Category: Westworld (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Coffee, Coffee Shops, F/M, Hector Is Pre-Law, Hector and Maeve's First Date, Maeve Is A Social Work Major, Tea
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-29
Updated: 2018-06-29
Packaged: 2019-05-30 06:39:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15091181
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/No_Day_But_Today/pseuds/No_Day_But_Today
Summary: After literally running her over with his bike, Maeve and Hector are going on a sort-of-maybe-date. Well, Maeve doesn't really know if it is a date or not. Does a 'can I take you to get coffee to apologize for running you over?' count as a date? Either way, she has no idea what she;s doing, or what to expect.





	Coffee or Tea?

**Author's Note:**

> I am planning on continuing this series by posting various one-shots of their relationship, however, I don't have anything planned out so this probably won't get updated regularly. Sorry y'all.

Maeve was… more nervous than she ought to be. This was just coffee, right? It’s not like this is a date or anything… It’s not like she wanted it to be a date... right?

She’d spent longer than she would care to admit rifling through her closet, trying to find the right outfight. She wanted something nice, but not something that made it look like she was trying to hard. Something comfortable, but not something that made her look unkept or lazy. It was… a much harder task than she had anticipated. She’d never been out on a date, or whatever this was, so she didn’t know what kind of attire was appropriate. A sweater? A dress? Jeans and a T-shirt? God, what was she supposed to wear?!

Eventually, she gave up and called in her roommate, Clementine. Clem had been on more dates (was this a date?) than she had been - well, let’s face it, anyone who had been on a date at all had been on more dates than her - so she should know what to do. She burst into Clem’s room and flopped down on the bed, throwing her arm over her eyes.

“Cleeeeeeeeeeem, I need help!” Clem laughed at her dramatics and closed her laptop. She got up from the desk and threw herself onto the bed, landing face down next to Maeve.

“What’s wrong Maeve?”

“I don’t know what to wear…”

“To the coffee date?”

“That’s just it! I don’t even know if it is a date! And what if it is? What do I wear? What’s appropriate for a, I don’t even know, meeting? With someone who hit you with their bike? What do-”

“Maeve! Calm down, hun. You’re thinkin’ about this too much. You just gotta relax and be yourself.”

“Okay, but that doesn’t solve my problem with what to wear!” Clementine laughed and got up, offering Maeve her hand.

“Come on, I’ll help you pick something out.” Maeve took Clem’s hand and allowed her to pull her to her feet. 

“Thank you, Clem! Honestly, I don’t know what I’d do without you!”

“Probably have a panic attack and show up to your date wearing a bathing suit or something!” Maeve shoved her playfully.

“Come on, you know I’d never go out wearing just a bathing suit! Especially not for coffee!” The girls spent the next hour going through Maeve’s closet and putting together outfits, laughing, and joking around. Once they’d finally picked an outfit - a simple, long-sleeved black shirt, jeans, and a maroon scarf - Clem set to work on Maeve’s makeup.

“Clem, I don’t need help doing my makeup, I know what I’m doing!” Clem continued to fuss over Meave, batting away her complaints and protestations like flies.

“Let me help, Maeve! This is your first date, and it should be special!”

“Clem, I don’t even know if this is a real date!”

“Well, it doesn’t really matter. You’ll show up looking like this and he’ll fall head over heels!”

* * *

 

Maeve was late. Again. But this time, it really wasn’t her fault! There was an accident on the way to the coffee shop so she got stuck in dead-stop traffic for a good 20 minutes. And, of course, she hadn’t thought to trade numbers with Mr. Hit-Me-With-Your-Bike-But-Still-Hot, so she had zero way to let him know that she was on her way. Or that she was going to be late.

She was internally cursing herself. What a great second impression she was making! First she, quite literally, runs into him while late for work, and here she was late for their maybe-date. He was going to think that she was some kind of scatterbrained idiot! She was almost never late and here it was happening for a second time! God, she just could not have worse luck when it came to this guy!

Whipping her car into parallel parking a good six blocks from the cafe, she leapt out of her car and almost into oncoming traffic. Apparently she was now trying to make running late and being hit by various vehicles a habit. She was definitely not having a good week, that’s for sure. Flipping off the person who almost ran her over, she hopped up on the curb and practically jogged to the cafe. When she finally walked - or burst - through the door, she was sure she looked like an insane woman. But, as she scanned the crowd of people within the cafe, she found Mr. Hit-Me-With-Your-Bike-But-Still-Hot in a corner. Damn. She really needed to learn his name… 

As she walked up to the table he was at, he looked up and smiled. He even stood as she made it to the table - apparently he was an old fashioned gentleman! 

“Hey!”

“Hey, sorry I’m so late, there was an accident on the highway and I got stuck in traffic… I feel so awful! I’m almost never late, but here I am. Late for the second time,.. And this is only the third time I’ve met you…” He laughed at that. A beautiful, rich, wonderful laugh that made Maeve a little weak in the knees - not that she would ever admit that to anyone. 

“It’s not a big deal. Everyone is late sometimes.” God he was so nice.

“I still feel awful though. I’ve always hated being late to, well, anything. It’s not like me to not be punctual.”

“Really, there’s no need to worry.” They sat in companionable silence for a moment before Maeve broke the silence.

“Oh, I, uhm… I never caught your name…”

“Oh, I’m so sorry, my name is Hector.” Maeve held out her hand and he shook it.”

“My name is Maeve, nice to finally meet you Hector.” 

“Likewise, Maeve.” They both laughed at that, both pretending as if they were just meeting for the first time - as if he hadn’t totally ran her over with his bike.

“Well, Maeve, what type of coffee do you like? Or do you like tea better?”

“I’m actually more fond of tea than coffee.” He seemed quite pleased at that.

“I thought so! You seem like a tea kind of person.” Maeve laughed.

“Oh, and what about me seems to scream ‘tea person’?”

“Hmm. I don’t know. I guess it’s just something about your… disposition? I’m not sure how to explain it.”

“Well, once you figure out what it is, you’ll have to explain it to me.”

“Of course, my lady. And what type of tea would you like today?”

“Hm,” she thought for a moment, unsure of what she should get. “Chai tea would be lovely, thank you.” He stood a bowed slightly to her before heading towards the counter to order.

“Right away.” Oh man, Maeve was in over her head. She’d never been on a date before, but she sure wasn’t an idiot. She knew flirting when she saw it, and he was definitely flirting with her. I mean, who bowed to people anymore? 

However, Maeve knew that she liked him. Really liked him. And she had no idea how to handle that. Oh god. She wished she knew how dating worked, but romance had never really been her thing. She didn’t really do… feelings… very well. And - oh god, he’s coming back with their drinks. He practically sauntered back to the table and placed her tea down in front of her before sitting down with his black coffee.

“Here you are…”

“Thank you,” she raised her eyebrow at his cup. “Black coffee?” He laughed and looked almost sheepish.

“I used to not like coffee at all, but I started working nights as a security guard a few years back and I needed the caffeine.” Maeve laughed, she could definitely identify with that feeling.

“I know the feeling. I work two jobs on top of full-time classes and volunteer work, so I’ve pulled more than my fair share of all-nighters.” He frowned.

“That seems like quite a lot… Why don’t you drop something to make your load a little lighter?”

“I can’t… I need my job to make ends meet, need the internship to get into grad school next year, and I can’t drop any classes if I want to graduate on time.”

“That makes sense… But what about the volunteering? Couldn’t you at least cut back on the hours?”

“No. I really can’t do that either.”

“Why not? Where do you volunteer?”

“I work with an organization that mentors children in the foster care system. Not only do we help with things like homework, we provide a stable mentor for the kids and take them out on outings. Help give them something constant while they wait for a family to adopt them.” She looked down at her tea, fiddling with the cup. This… wasn’t something that she told many people about. Only Clem and a few of her co-workers knew. It’s not that she was embarrassed, per se. She just didn’t like being unable to predict what others would think or do, and no one seemed to think she was the type to volunteer with children. She only glance up at him when he spoke.

“That’s… wonderful. I can understand why you wouldn’t want to stop.” Maeve felt herself blush, shying away from his praise. 

“Do you mentor just one child, or are there several?”

“Only one. A little girl named Anna. She’s the sweetest little thing.” He smiled at her brightly.

“I’m glad she has someone like you in her life.” God dammit, why did he have to be so charming? Every time she thought she knew what to say, or what to think, he had to do something she didn’t expect. It would be infuriating if she didn’t like him so much. She cleared her throat and decided to change the subject, wanting to move away from talking about her personal life.

“Anyway, what are you studying?”

“Oh, I’m a pre-law student.”

“Really?!”

“Yes! What’s so hard to believe about that?”

“You just don’t strike me as the type to pursue law.”

“Oh, and what about me makes you think that?”

“Hm. Not sure…” He smiled, mimicking her earlier words.

“Once you figure out just what it is, you’ll have to tell me.” She laughed, and he started to laugh as well.

“Well, what are you studying?”

“I’m a social work major.”

“That’s not too surprising, given what you told me about your volunteering. What’s your internship?”

“I work in a family counseling center, mainly handling low-level cases and doing clerical work, but it’s experience that will help when I apply for grad schools.”

“Hm… true. I interned at a law office for about a year. Did all the grunt work in the office.” She laughed, well versed in that it feels like to do all of the office’s busy work. 

They stayed at the cafe for several hours, losing all track of time as they talked. Eventually, they noticed the sun beginning to set.

“Oh my, we’ve been here for ages… perhaps we should leave, I don’t think the staff here appreciates how long we’ve stayed…” She gestured at one of the baristas, who was occasionally shooting them dirty looks. 

“Yes, maybe we should…” They both sat in silence for a few moments, both feeling obligated to leave after so long, but neither wanting to part. Eventually, Hector perked up, a spark in his eyes.

“Well, would you like to go get dinner? We’ve been here for hours, and I’m sure you’re just as hungry as I am…” He trailed off, unsure. However, come to think of it, Maeve was quite hungry… and she did like spending time with him…

“I would like that very much. Do you know anything nearby that’s good?”

“I do know of a good Vietnamese place a few blocks away… They make amazing Pho.”

“Sounds perfect!” Maeve smiled and followed Hector out the door, gladly slipping her hand into his when he offered it. Walking through the autumn streets, she didn’t think she’d ever felt this… cozy.


End file.
